Statistics Seminar Co-hosted by the Permanent Mission of Japan to the United Nations and the OECD “Leveraging Trustworthy Data for Better Lives: OECD Statistical Practices Explained”

On March 3, 2026, commencing at 1:15 p.m. for approximately one and a half hours, the statistical seminar “Leveraging Trustworthy Data for Better Lives: OECD Statistical Practices Explained” was held at the Permanent Mission of Japan to the United Nations, co-hosted with the OECD. The overview of the seminar is as follows:
 
1.    At the outset, Mr. Hisashi Kitahara, Director-General for International Statistical Affairs, Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, who was visiting for the Statistical Commission meeting, introduced Japan's long-standing contribution to strengthening statistical capacity in the Asia-Pacific region through its support to the United Nations Statistical Institute for Asia and the Pacific (SIAP), as well as Japan's collaboration with the United Nations, including the outreach activities aligned with the celebration of World Statistics Day on October 20, 2025.
 
2.    From the OECD, H.E. Mr. Thomas Schnöll, Ambassador and OECD Special Representative and Permanent Observer to the United Nations, attended. Also present were Mr. Steve MacFeely, Chief Statistician of the OECD and Director of the Statistics and Data Directorate; Johannes Jütting, Executive Head of the PARIS21 Secretariat, and Romina Boarini, Director of the Centre on Well-being, Inclusion, Sustainability and Equal Opportunity (WISE) at the OECD, each gave presentations. Their presentation included OECD statistical standards, including recent changes to GDP calculation methods, and OECD initiatives through partnerships aimed at capacity building for developing countries.
 
3.    The subsequent Q&A session covered a wide range of topics, including the necessity of establishing reliable data, capacity-building efforts for developing countries in the field of statistics, the need for sustainable financing in data systems and cultural differences in responses to subjective well-being surveys.